Twisted
by Jaygirl95
Summary: Wonderland, a place thougt to be nothing more than fantasy created by a normal man. Who would've ever thought it was real? None the less controls the life of humanity? Who else would've thought that Wonderland was now facing it's worst crisis ever?
1. Prolouge: The Key

1Well I'm a bit new here so I have no clue if I'm doing this right but there's a first time for everything right? Right.

To start off this story Involves ideas taken from the story/movie Alice in Wonderland and almost all characters come from the anime Hetalia. The lone exception being my own OC, Jay Ranaka and a few other minor characters.

I won't be giving a big summary to the story as that's what this chapter is for. I will usually always provide a back-story to the actual story before it's written. It really doesn't make sense if there's a long history and you don't know what's going on XD Well enough of my blabbering, let's get to the story-

**DISCLAIMER:**

I do not own Hetalia or Alice in Wonderland. I would like to but sadly I don't (XD). They belong to their respective owners, not me.

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_Prologue- The Key_

Y'know, if you jump down a hole most usually you'll hit an earthy floor covered in rocks and the like. Although it really does all depend on which holes you choose to jump down, doesn't it?

You wouldn't believe me unless you happened to find it yourself but if you jumped down this one certain hole -that I believe is somewhere in London, England- then you'd not only find not only another floor of ground but a whole other world! Now I'm sure you've heard a thing or two about the curious girl ,Alice, who went chasing after the little white rabbit down the hole and landed in Wonderland, no? Makes me wonder just how many people actually would've ever came to the conclusion that such a place like Wonderland does actually exist!

Only this Wonderland has a purpose for being. It has a purpose for existing.

I'm sure you've had a science lesson or two in school about the core of the Earth and how it's supposedly a very warm place filled with lava and other such substances, no? Well, this is only speculation. Yes, dear children your teachers feed you lies and don't truly understand anything besides what's written in their textbooks.

It's the same for scientists.

Scientists really don't know anything more than where they put their shoes at night. It's just the ignorance of humans that makes all their technical, made-up, fancy sounding jargon to sound correct. Only a few hand-full of people really understand that what scientists say has really already been proven and discovered by nature alone. They just hype up their talk to sound technical by stealing from the Latin language and creating their own confusing words.

At Earth's core there is not a molten lava pit, it is not insanely hot and it is not a place where you would burn up on the spot should you find someway of getting there -should you be so unlucky-.

Earth's core is Wonderland. A _twisted_ ,supernatural, existing, interesting wonder world. It is here where you can find the world's oldest secrets.

Wonderland has existed since the beginning of time itself. When the Earth was bare it was there (I'd also like you to ignore the rhyme made there if you would be so kind). It's purpose was to watch over the Earth and keep rejuvenating it when the humans went and destroyed it. Oh yes, the humans have destroyed their world more than once. Thanks to Wonderland though the world has been reset numerous times, given chances again and again to make a happy ending so everyone may go to heaven at the end of their cycle.

How did the people of Wonderland do this? With a "Key". The King of Hearts runs Wonderland and hidden deep under his castle lies a room which only the "Key" can open. In this room the condition of Earth is shown and if it must be cleansed and restarted then only a wish must be made inside this room and the Earth is reset.

Each new century a new "Key" is chosen. This is because the "Key" has a life-span just like anything else and will die eventually just as all and everything else does. Even rocks die. You did know this didn't you.....?

The "Key" is chosen through the will of Wonderland. One of the king's most important jobs is finding the "Key", should he not find it he would be known as one of the worst kings of his time. The king finds the "Key" by holding a ceremony. People who want to be the "Key" or believe they are the "Key" attend the ceremony. The king has the ability to see who the "Key" truly is by using a special item that is passed from king to king as each king dies and a new one takes the throne.

If the "Key" is not found in the crowd of people who attend then a search is issued by the king where he sends his guards/army (the aces and spades as they are called. Aces are the higher of the guards most of the time being captains and leaders of a troop or platoon. The Spades are lower in class and are controlled and given orders to by the Aces) around Wonderland to find the "Key" and once they do find the "Key" it is taken back to the castle to stay there until it's assistance is needed. Should it live after it's job is done it shall still stay at the castle as it still has the power to cleanse the world should that need arise so quickly.

In recent years though...the "Key" has not been found. It is what people in Wonderland are referring to as _lost_. The current King of Hearts has sent his troops around Wonderland at least a dozen times and like each and every other time they'd come back empty handed. In Wonderland this sort of thing is a crisis as the world can't be cleansed and could possibly be in peril. The king's troops work 'round the clock, night and day throughout Wonderland to find the lost "Key".

But what they didn't know...

Was that the "Key"....

Wasn't in Wonderland....

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Whoo! Finally got it out there! Officially the first prologue of my first story on Fanfiction! Well I hope I made things clear enough for you all and if you have any questions don't be afraid to ask me. Chao!


	2. Chapter 1: Regular,Boring Life

Whooཀ Second chapter alreadyཀ Heheh, I'm not really one for updating late, in fact I might update a bit too much XD Anyway, do enjoy the chapter, especially you hugglestheknowitallཀ XD

**DISCLAIMER:**

I don't own Hetalia or Alice in Wonderland, they belong to their respective owners.

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_Chapter 1- Regular, Boring Life_

Along the windy streets of London, England walked a blonde haired girl with her hands stuffed lazily in to the pockets of her black pants. Her eyes were fixed on the sidewalk in front of her as she ambled on home to the orphanage she had been living in since she was small.

This girl was me.

I know most of you could give less of a damn about someone else's life, well of a person you don't know, but this is a tale I must share with you. Wether your keen on listening to it or completely give it up at the drop of a hat is up to you but for those of you that do listen I promise this tale won't be a normal one.

Ambling down the street back to the orphanage was a regular task for me. I did it everyday after school was over. I always hated going to school but then again didn't everyone? Listening to some old fart stand or sit there and talk for hours and hours on end about things you could care less about, it was quite tedious and boring- made you want to go jump out of a window or something....

At least that's what it did to me....

Sometimes.....

All the time....

_Sigh_

Anyway, getting back to the real story at hand I was by now almost home to the orphanage. I couldn't say I was particularly happy about that nor was I upset about it either. The orphanage life was dull for me. I was hardly ever aloud to go anywhere (that didn't stop me from sneaking out of the orphanage though), I hardly had any excitement and well, let's just say I didn't get along well with the kids in the orphanage. Therefore I had no friends either, no one to talk to. I occasionally talked to the nicer aids that worked in the orphanage but they were never around for long.

I was very secluded from everyone and most people saw me as quiet and uninteresting. If they had known what was swirling around in my head however I think they might've thought twice about that assumption. Well it wasn't like I could take my brain out of my head and show them what I was all about so they'd just have to keep thinking what they thought about me. It's not like I really cared though.

Since I was small I had been living in the orphanage so I was used to this sort of thing now being sixteen years old but..really the orphanage life wasn't something to get used to. It wasn't fun at all.

Could I tell you about my life before the orphanage?

Actually that would be quite impossible.

I didn't remember my life before the orphanage.

Apparently when I was brought to the orphanage I was brought there because one of the aids, Annabell, found me passed out in the nearby woods and brought me there to be treated. The only thing I could remember was my name. I didn't remember where I came from ,who my parents were, where I lived. Nothing.

Ah, a new subject to speak about. Annabell. Annabell was the only person in the orphanage that I held in high standards. She was kind to me and seemed interested in what I had to speak about, which would usually be the dreams I had from the night before. My dreams were always interesting to me and apparently they were to Annabell to because she seemed intent on listening to them. Then again she really listened to anything I said.

Unfortunately I didn't speak with Annabell very much as she was assigned to be with a sickly kid in the orphanage and take care of him, Nicholas Wolsen was his name. He was very clingy to Annabell and treated her much like she were his mother. Nicolas was also very whiny and complained to Annabell about everything that was wrong with him. He was a complete and utter wuss and he milked Annabell's kindness 'till there was no more left in the cow. Of course Annabell was always kind to him. Poor girl, she never got a break with that kid. I would've tossed him out the window by now or at least had given him a beating or two to show him to man up a bit.

The only time I ever really talked to Annabell was when she had to make Nicolas something to eat (as he was a sickly child he wasn't aloud anywhere near the kitchen) or the very first half an hour when I came home from school as Nicolas was always sleeping at this time and Annabell got a break from him. I usually got to talk to her for a bit in the mornings too before I went to school.

I stared ahead as the orphanage came into view. It was a tall, bricked, five-story building that stood high up in the air with a high fence surrounding it. I honestly pictured it as more of a prison rather than an orphanage. But that was just my view of it. Maybe to the other kids it did actually look like something of a home....

I could never call this place home.....

As I reached the doors of the orphanage I took the handles of the doors into my hands and pulled them open, dropping them closed behind me once I had entered the orphanage. The main floor was deserted. This was usual though as the sickly kids needed attending to on the higher floors of the builsing. The aids tried to keep the sickly kids away from the healthy ones which I thought was a good idea as some of the sicker kids had very dangerous illnesses.

Sighing I walked to the many couches that were pressed up against the long walls of the main floor and dropped myself and my bag onto the couch. I took a book I was reading out of my bag and crossed my legs as I flipped open the book and began to read. The book I was reading was called _Duskk Chronicles:1- Duskk _and it was by some girl who referred to herself as J.A.R, I rather liked the book. Though I found it weird how the girl in the book had the same exact name as me....

As I read on I could hear a tired sigh from across the hall but I didn't take my eyes off of the intriguing book I was reading. I knew all to well who it could be...

_Probably just the kids getting home from school...It's best to just ignore them...._, I thought to myself.

"Hey, Jay. You're home pretty early today" came the kind voice of the only person who showed me any kindness in this dreadful place. My eyes averted upwards to find Annabell smiling at me. A small smile crossed my face.

"Hey Annabell, off for the moment?" I laughed, setting my book aside as Annabell took a seat beside me. I liked talking with Annabell. She was very intelligent and like I mentioned before she listened to what I had to say and didn't just brush off what I said.

"Yeah, Nick's asleep so I'm free for the moment" Annabell giggled.

"I see" I chuckled.

"So how was school?"

"Hell"

"Oh c'mon, Jay. It couldn't of been that bad"

"When you're Jay Ranaka it is" I snorted. It was all too true though. I didn't get along with the kids in my school or in the orphanage. To me my life was hell. I tried looking on the positive as best I could but whenever I looked on the positive the positive always became the negative.

"Well I'm sorry to hear that but you know, you should feel a bit proud" Annabell encouraged.

"Why's that?" I questioned.

"You have a very wide imagination, Jay. You can think farther beyond what the media tells you while the other kids in this orphanage....They only want to leave this place so they can get rich doing almost anything" Annabell smiled.

"Heh...thanks, Anna" I said smiling. It was hard not to smile when Annabell boosted my morale like that. I mean, I didn't have a low self-esteem issue but I didn't think of myself highly or anything- this however was caused by my amnesia as to who I was before I was here in the orphanage not what the other kids did or said. I felt that way because I felt a bit like an outcast. Most people knew who their parents were, they knew where they grew up. They knew more then their own name....I didn't.

"Your welcomeཀ Say, do you want something to eat?"Annabell offered "And don't say 'I'm sure you've done enough today', if you need something to eat then you need something to eat, plain and simple" Annabell laughed.

I chuckled "Alright sure. How about some tea? I'm honestly not too hungry right now" I asked and Annabell smiled and nodded before leaving to make the tea I had asked for a moment ago.

If I ever did remember anything about my mother...I would hope that I remember her being something like Annabell...

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Whooཀ FINཀ Well I thoroughly enjoyed writing this chapter and the next chapter shall be up very soon XD

Chao for nowཀ


	3. Chapter 2: Anger

_**DISCLAIMER:**_

I do not own Hetalia or Alice in Wonderland.

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_Chapter 2- Anger _

For the remainder of the time Annabell was free the two of us talked like we normally did. It seemed like we could talk about everything and anything and for hours and hours on end. Of course the length we talked was only about a half an hour because around that time Nicolas would wake up. Damn kid...I really did hate him. Acting so weak when he was capable of doing things just fine on his own and he was my age too! Ugh, so frustrating....

I waved goodbye to Annabell as she left to go attend to Nicolas as hour talkative half hour was now up. I looked around the main floor once Annabell was gone. I had only just now noticed that it was flooded with the kids that stayed within the orphanage's walls. I sighed.

Great.

Just great.

Now I was surrounded by these assholes....

Soundlessly I picked up my book and began to read again. I would've gone up to my room but my room was right across from a room that contained a baby and it's constant crying and whining... God it drove me nuts. I understand that's what babies do, they cry but Jesus, couldn't those aids make the poor thing feel a little more like it was fucking loved?

As I read my book I knew I was receiving weird looks from some of the kids. Either that or they were staring at me, for not fitting in with their crowd, with disgust. Then their was always the option that they were staring at me with fear...I had gotten into quite a lot of fights with the kids from them picking on me.

I may of been quiet and secluded but I wasn't one to tolerate getting picked on or getting pushed around. Thanks to that no one picked on me anymore, just glared at me, which I could live with. As long as they didn't come near me or talk to me I was fine. I just wanted to be left alone.

For what felt like hours I stayed absorbed in my book. It was like this everyday, though I enjoyed reading. It gave me something to get lost in. The books I read took me to amazing places that made this orphanage life not so bad. I know I made it seem like it was hell but really when I just took a step back and went easy....I couldn't say it was horrible. I couldn't say it was great...but I couldn't say it was horrible either. Other people had much worse lives than I did.

I looked up upon hearing a bell. Wow, I had been reading that long? That was the bell signaling all the kids to go to the diner room, which would be where we ate dinner. Our dinners weren't anything special but honestly we were orphan kids living in an _orphanage_ it wasn't like we were going to get extraordinary dinners or something. Well, they were edible at least. It wasn't like that mud served at schools.

Haha.

Mud.

Not daring to lose any of the scenery that was now floating around in my head from the book's words I stood up and began to walk towards the Diner Room. I pushed open the door to the Diner Room with my shoulder and began to walk around kind of aimlessly. I had no idea I was doing it though...

That was until I tripped over something....

"Yowch" I muttered from my position on the floor. What the hell had I tripped over? I sighed getting to my knees and looking around for my book. It had gone flying from my hands when I fell "Damn, where'd it go" I questioned myself.

Then came that deafly song....

The one that made me go insane every time...

"Aww, look. Little Jay-Jay tripped" mocked a red haired boy named Mavrik.

I grit my teeth as my fingers ran over my book that I had been searching for. By now I was figuring that I must of tripped over the male's foot that he stuck out on purpose to make me trip.

"You should get your head out of the clouds. Maybe you would've actually seen my foot there" he mocked some more, the people around him chuckling and giggling.

_Stay calm, Jay..._, I told myself. All I had to do was ignore him. I couldn't get into another fight. They'd kick me out of the orphanage for sure and then where would I go? I mean I hated this place more than anything but it wasn't like I could make it out there in the streets so I had to grin and bear this life.

I picked up my book and got to my feet before I began to walk away from Mavrik. I just couldn't get into a fight with him especially not with all the kids staring. They'd definitely back up Mavrik and leave me out in the dust to die. Those kids could've given less of a damn about me like I've mentioned many times before.

"Oh, c'mon! You're not gonna fight back?" he mocked.

_Stay calm..._

"C'mon you stupid girl! Fight back! What are you a bloody wuss?"

_Stay calm..._

"You're so stupid. You'll fight everyone else but not me? I guess I am just that intimidating"

"S-Stay calm..." I warned myself through gritted teeth as my pace began to slow down. My fist was beginning to ball up and a bead of sweat was running down the side of my face.

"What was that? Asking me nicely to leave you alone? I'm sorry but you'll have to get on your knees and beg for that. Bitch"

My eyes went wide as I stopped, freezing mid-step. His comments were festering around in my head like tumors. I couldn't stop it..The mockery in his voice...How he was making me out to be a low-life dog in front of everyone..._I could kill him if I wanted to...I could....If I wanted to.... _

That was the last straw and it had broke into little itty-bity pieces.

"Oh what're you- Gah!" Mavrik cried.

I had lost all control and tackled him to the ground and before I knew it I was punching his ugly face incessantly, without stopping. There was a rage inside me. A rage that had been built up over the years of this abuse, this verbal and physical abuse...

There was a monster born from all this pain I held....

As I kept pounding my fists into the boy's face I could only see red. Red. It blurred my vision, my thoughts, my actions....

I could only faintly hear the outside world around me, there were screams and gasps coming from everyone and suddenly I was pulled off of Mavrik and dragged away from him. I still tried hurting him though, swung my legs at him, tried kicking him.

I stopped all of that though when I caught ear of something that just...Completely halted any movement I was forcing out against the grips of the hands that were grabbing me...

" She has to be taken out of the orphanage! She's too dangerous!"

As I was dragged away, my eyes widened. They were kicking me out of the orphanage? They couldn't... No...

I ripped my body out of the grip of whoever was pulling me and bolted in the direction of where the front door was of the orphanage.

They weren't taking me out of the orphanage....I was leaving it....

Once I was out of the orphanage and out into the front yard I sprinted towards the gates. They were locked of course so I had to climb them. That's what I did to. I placed my feet wherever I could to scale higher up the fence. Once I was at the top I swung my feet over the top of the gate and climbed down the fence. Once my feet touched the ground I took off running towards the forest near the orphanage.

I just wanted to get so far away from that place....

It was my own personal hell

And you know...

I was never going back...

I swore I wouldn't....

Suddenly though as I ran deeper and deeper into the forest, not looking where I was going my movement was halted. Not because I had stopped, not because I had tripped but because suddenly the ground wasn't there. Suddenly I was no longer standing on ground, I wasn't standing on anything....

In fact I was falling.

Into a deep, dark hole in the ground...I couldn't stop the shriek that left my mouth...

_I swore I'd never go back there....._


	4. Chapter 3: Death Or Not?

Alright, before we get on with Jay's little adventure into Hetalia Wonderland I just want to take a moment to thank my reviewers and people who favorited the story. I know I've only got a few reviews but I have to tell you I am really lovin' 'em XD Thank you so much guys for you're wonderful reviews, it really gives me something to look forward to.

Well without further ado let's introduce Jay to the mad, mad world of Hetalia!Wonderland, and as usual I do not own Hetalia or Alice in Wonderland.

_Chapter 3- Death...Or not?_

_Why? Why? Why? Why is this happening to me? _

_Why am I the one meeting a horrible death?_

_I had to go through all that hell just...to die...?_

Those were the thoughts that ran through my head as I fell down the hole. I couldn't believe it...I had finally made the resolve to leave that hell and now...

Now I was going to die? And in the most horrible way too...From falling down a hole...

I could've at least gotten epically hit by a bus or something...

At that time though I was nowhere near laughing...

In fact...

I was crying...Even if just a little bit I was most certainly crying...

For some unknown reason my arm was outstretched in front of me as if reaching for the life I once had, reaching for a chance to live again. My eyes were still wide open in shock as tears feel from them. Dear God why was my suffering prolonged? Why couldn't I just smash against the inevitable death that awaited me at the bottom of this long, long hole?

But all of the sudden something happened...

Something amazing...

Unheard of...

All of the sudden my body came to complete halt in mid-air.

My eyes widened even more so than they already had been. What was going on? There was no way I could've stopped in mid-air! It was just impossible! Even with all the fantasies I had immersed myself into through the books I read I still knew what was the possible and what was the impossible and stopping in mid-air was certainly impossible.

All of the sudden a ghost of a floor began to sketch out in front of my face, getting clearer and more real every passing second. When the floor had finally focused in I found that it's tiles were a red and black checkered pattern and suddenly...slowly...

I was being flipped...

I felt my head drift downwards -the unpleasant feeling of blood rushing to the tip of it pursuing- and my feet begin to drift upwards.

And then...

The next most abnormal thing to happen...

I was... lowered...onto the floor -that had just decided to randomly appear in front of me- as if it had created it's own gravitational force and was pulling me back to Earth. When my feet touched the floor I suddenly felt like the world had been flipped over. I no longer felt blood rushing to my head and my long blonde hair that was once dangling below my head was now resting messily on my shoulders and my bangs were going every which way in front of my face.

I just kind of stood there...

Like an idiot...

Well what did you expect me to do?

A moment ago I was falling to my death and now suddenly a floor just fucking appeared in front of me and now I was standing on it! What the hell was I supposed to think?

This was absurd, unreal! I had no idea what to think! I was confused out of my mind and I had no idea what the hell just even happened.

Well one thing I did know...This had to be...

"This has to be a dream..." I muttered to myself after finally being able to function and think again. I glanced down at my hand and brought it up to my face and...

WHAM

I gave my noggin a good jam, expecting to still be falling or even be back in the orphanage passed out on the couch or in my bed...

But that didn't happen...

I was still...Here...In this...

What the hell was it even...?

Right now it didn't matter to me at all I was still in shock over the fact this wasn't a dream. How could it not be a dream? This was...it felt like I had fallen into one of my books that I always read...Had I? I didn't know...For right now I just had to piece together what I knew...

Okay...So I beat Mavrik to a pulp, found out I was going to be kicked out of the orphanage, ran away into the woods, fell down a hole...and now I was here...in this...whatever the hell it was...

That made..

No sense...

What-

So-

Ever

I knew it was possible I was crazy but somehow...this was all starting to feel so real. Wherever I was, this WASN'T a dream, I was starting to see that now. Somehow, someway this place had been at the bottom of that hole. It sounded totally bizarre but...if this wasn't a dream I wouldn't of been able to feel my the inside of my shoes pressing against my feet, I wouldn't of been able to feel my hair in a floating mess around my shoulders, I wouldn't have been able to feel the blood draining out of my head and a festering headache taking it's place...

Ow...

I gave a sigh, so now I had gotten it through my brain that this place was somehow real...Now...How to get out of it?

I looked around and noticed that there was not only a floor but walls, a tall brown door and as my head tilted upwards I saw there was even a ceiling. This, my friend, was a room. Yes indeed a room. My eyes averted back over to the door and seeing as there was nothing else to do in this room I walked towards it.

Reaching out to grab the handle I jumped. I could suddenly hear a muttering voice on the other side of the door. What it was saying was a mystery to me but this door must've been thinner than paper for me to be able to hear even that much of someone's voice on the other side of it.

Well at least I knew I wasn't the only one here.

WAIT! Maybe I could ask the person for help! Find out where I was!

Spirits high, I grabbed the handle of the door and pushed it open. I entered the room slowly so as not to frighten whoever was there. Believe me one of the aids back at the orphanage had opened my door and burst in there like a wild animal. Scared the living hell out of me and while I was eager to find out where I was I didn't want to scare the person away.

Oddly enough I came to find that the voice belonged to a man with shoulder length messy brown hair. His back was turned towards me but from what I could see I could tell he was wearing a vest with a white long-sleeved shirt, black slacks and shiny black shoes. The odd part about him though...the weirdest part of his attire had to be his hat. It was a black top hat with...long white bunny ears sticking out of the sides of it...

Didn't anyone tell this guy that Halloween was six months ago?

Whatever, he was the only other human being in this room and I needed answers. I did want to find out where I was and this guy, though odd, seemed like he could give me at least some of the answers I needed.

"Um, hey you! Bunny guy!" I called.

"Oh Jesus, he's going to kill me for being late! What the hell were you thinking, Toris? You stupid rabbit. Oh yes going to look for the Key at the entrance to Wonderland was a very good idea, too bad he or she is not even here! Gah! The king is going to have my head for this!" the bunny-rabbit rather as this was made apparent from his mumbles- man ranted to himself.

Um...

Had he not even heard me call to him?

And what was this about a king? A Key? WONDERLAND? Where the hell was I? This place was already like a madhouse!

"Erm, sir! Could you please tell me where I am? I'm kinda lost see-"

"Ah, and then he's going to look at me with that creepy smile and he's going to, going to- GAH! Why am I wasting time here? I have to go!" the rabbit man announced and ran towards a medium-sized black door.

WAIT! What the shit! This asshole was just leaving me here? Had he not even heard me? Oh, hell no. this ass was NOT getting away. I WAS getting my goddamn answers! NOW!

"HEY YOU FREAKING CARROT LICKER GET BACK HERE!" I shouted but he didn't stop heading for the door.

I growled "YOU ASS! DON'T PRETEND YOU CAN'T HEAR ME!" I shouted and ran after the rabbit man only to crash into the door that was abruptly slammed into my face after the rabbit man had disappeared behind it. "GAH!" I cried out in pain.

Great, I already had a headache...

And now I have a migraine...

"Ooo, when I find that little...Ooo, he is so gonna get it. I'm gonna Mavrik his ass" I growled and yanked at the handle of the door and instead of it opening like I thought it would it sorta... did the exact opposite.

"WHAT! Are you kidding me? This thing can't be locked!" I yelled putting my foot on the wall next to the door and incessantly yanked on the doorknob. "GRAA! C'MON YOU STUPID DOOR! YOU OPENED FOR THAT RETARDED RABBIT DIDN'T YOU!" I yelled at the door.

Honestly, now I was talking to inanimate objects...I really must've been going nuts.

"Grr, alright, no more mister nice girl!" I huffed, letting go of the door. I took very many steps back before getting into a stance. I took a deep breath and then darted at the door. "HYAAAAAAA!"I cried out as I ran at the door.

As my shoulder made contact with the door I was surprised to find that I was suddenly flying forward. THE DOOR HAD OPENED!

And I was flying face first into the ground...

I gave out a yelp as my body smashed onto the floor outside of the door. "...Ow..." came my muffled voice as my face lay smashed into the floor. I gave a sigh and heaved myself up onto my knees.

What had been a migraine was now a blistering, roaring ringing in my ears.

Great.

Just great.

I shook my head to sort of clear it a bit. Unfortunately it only increased my headache. I really just couldn't win today huh? Fell down a hole into a mad world, got ignored by a rabbit man, got owned by a door and now I had a blistering headache. I didn't even dare ask what could go wrong next because I had a feeling a lot of things would.

I dusted off my pants and stood up "Next time try opening it BOTH ways, Jay. Both ways..." I advised myself as I dusted off the sleeves of my shirt. When I looked ahead I found that this room was actually sort of like a tunnel. The floor was flat at first but then it went up a bit, creating an incline. At the top of the incline there was a hole, one I could climb out of.

With a sigh and a need for answers I started up the incline...


	5. Chapter 4: Tainted Waters Tainted World

Sorry I haven't uploaded in a few days guys! But look! I updated this chapter and I have a new story out! I was sick for a few days so I wasn't able to get anything up but I'm feeling a bit better now and even if I wasn't by this point I'd have to get something up. I can't stay away from writing for very long XD

Anyway I am back in action and better than ever! To boost my moral even more I found this wicked awesome game called "American McGee's Alice" and as the title implies it's about Alice in Wonderland, only in a sick, twisted, morbid sort of way. It's the true way I had always envisioned Alice in Wonderland (hence why our main girl is a bit messed up in the head XD Though her insanity does fit in with her true story) and it really gave me inspiration.

Well little ones here is the next chapter of Jay's adventure into Wonderland, here we learn something a bit...interesting about our little wonder world.

As usual I don't own Hetalia or Alice in Wonderland.

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**Chapter 4- Tainted Waters, Tainted World**

Farther and farther up the incline I scaled. The height of it looked so short from down at the bottom of it but now that I was actually climbing it I could see that it was actually quite a climb. Damn, why did things always have to be so deceiving? Couldn't they just be what they looked like? Things always seemed to have second meanings behind them. Looking at a regular math equation you could never guess you could do so many different things with it and still end up with the same answer.

"Ugh, shit. What a freaking climb" I panted as I had finally got up to the hole at the top of the incline. Stopping to catch my breath I looked out of the hole to find a new piece of land in front of me, only it was covered in sand. Beyond the sandy ground there was...a red sea.

A red sea?

Koolaid?

I wouldn't be surprised considering this world was anything but normal. Honestly it was at the bottom of a hole, I had a feeling anything could happen in this world. I wouldn't be surprised if a talking cheeseburger doing the Hokey Pokey came out of nowhere ranting about the joys of cheese.

Yeah, that was perfectly possible in this world.

I climbed through the hole and once out of it I got to my feet and brushed the sand off of the knees of my pants. I turned my attention back to the red sea in front of me and wondered....

Just how in hell was I going to cross it?

I looked here and there but no such sort of transportation could be found to get me across the sea. Could I swim it? No...I realized that wasn't possible. For as far as I could see there was just red. There was no other land on the other side, even if I had attempted to swim it I would've drowned from exhaustion of swimming to much. That and....

I had no idea what lurked in those waters.

Maybe there was nothing in the red sea but what if there was? What if it was some sort of mutated shark that had consumed over one thousand lives in it's lifetime waiting solely for me to make the number of lives it consumed increase?! The horror of it all...

But then again....If I stayed here I would die anyway. Either of starvation or dehydration. It was really a die, die situation. Either I stayed here and died pathetically from such simple ailments as starvation or I could brave the red sea that potentially had nothing in it.

Did my adventure end here or...

My option was clear.

I was braving that sea.

I inhaled deeply and began walking towards the sea. A funny thought crossed my mind. What if the sea was actually made of Koolaid? It would be strangely odd but none the less it would be refreshing to swim through rather than just plain old water, wouldn't you agree?

As my left foot landed an inch before the shore line I heard a voice.

"WAIT!" it called out rather frantically.

I jumped at the sudden sound but overall once I realized what it was I was happy to hear it. It meant someone else was here and could possibly give me the answers I was seeking. Hopefully they were talking to me and didn't ignore me this time, like that damned rabbit.

But...Where had this man come from all of the sudden...?

I looked over to where the voice had come from and saw a boy with long dark brown hair tied back into a ponytail. I could tell he had it in a ponytail because his hair was lazily rested over his shoulder. His attire consisted of a brown scheme, both his pants and shirt being of a light brown color.

"What is it?" I questioned as he neared closer to me, he only began to speak once he stopped a short distance away from me.

"You can't go in those waters" he started "They're dangerous, aru" he finished.

"Are they?" I questioned absentmindedly. I turned my head out to the sea in wonder. While I had been previously curious about the possibility of my death brought on by these waters I had forced my head to believe that no harm would come to me when I swam through the waters but now that I had someone telling me they were dangerous....I was just all the more shocked that I had almost went into them....

"I can see you want to cross them though. Here, you can come with me on my boat, aru" said the man. As I looked back to him I found that he was smiling. He sure liked using that 'aru' word, huh?

Wait, what?! He had a boat!? Where did this guy even come from? He sure as hell wasn't there when I got here...Then again I had to keep reminding myself that this world wasn't normal and neither were it's people. Things happened here that couldn't be explained.

"Alright...but just where is this boat of yours?" I questioned looking at him inquiringly. I mean I knew the guy came out of nowhere but he was just a person, how could a boat come out of nowhere? Then again, something I had failed to think of, maybe this guy had been there the whole time and I had just not seen him. That sounded pretty possible.

"Over here, aru!" the man smiled and gestured off in a direction rather happily and exaggeratedly.

I blinked, my gaze following the direction in which the man had gestured to. Well what do you know? There really was a boat over there, along with a boy with short, shiny black hair on top of it. His clothes followed a more white theme.

The boat wasn't terribly huge but it wasn't small either. It was a nicely sized boat with a visible motor attached to the back of it. It had metal railings running around on the tops of the edges of the boat and it looked like it could hold at least six people comfortably.

"Kiku! Bring the boat 'round this way, aru!" the brown-haired male called to the black haired boy on the boat.

The black haired male responded by nodding to the one who had called to him and hopped up from his place in the boat and went over to the front of it where a metal box that was attached to the railings running around the boat was placed. The box seemed to have buttons, joysticks and controls of the like, apparently this boat was a motor boat. If not an old fashioned one.

Well at least I knew one of the men's names, it would make the exchanging of names a heck of a lot easier. So the black haired man's name was Kiku....that was an interestingly odd name but I could remember it...I hope. I was most usually good with remembering names.

As Kiku brought the boat around to where me and the brown haired man stood, said man began to speak again.

"Kiku and I were just out here lounging about when we spotted you about to go into the water's. I'm guessing you don't know much about Wonderland, or at least this part of it. You were probably born further up towards the King's Court near the Bloody Bruised Forest am I right, aru?" asked the man with a smile.

I just stared at him....

What in hell's name was this Wonderland he was talking about? The rabbit guy had mentioned it too and what was this talk of this Bloody Blah Blah Forest and the King's Court? What the hell was going on here?! Where the hell was I?!

Though I knew one thing. From what I could gather this guy and probably many other people in this world weren't particularly used to outsiders so I had to act like something had happened to make me lose my memory or something.

"Um, look this might sound a bit odd but I have no idea what you're talking about. See, the only thing I can remember is my name and besides that the last thing I remember was getting whacked in the head with something" I lied. Well it wasn't a complete lie in a sense. When I was brought to the orphanage I really didn't know anything more than my own name.

"Eh? Really? You must've gotten hit pretty hard there then. Oh! Wait a minute! You probably got hit by a Vaguely Tree! One hit from those things and you're memory is as good as toast, aru! Well luckily there is a remedy for it" the man smiled at me some more.

I nodded "Well, that certainly is good news. By the way I'm Jay" I introduced.

"Names Yao - and this is Kiku" the man replied, gesturing to Kiku who had by now brought the boat around in front of us.

"Pleasure to meet you" Kiku greeted me with an emotionless face or rather an unreadable one. He had a sort of flat tone as well...Guess he wasn't one to talk much.

"You too" I answered back as I climbed into the boat with Yao. I sat down in the boat with my back against it. Yao sat down a little ways away from me as Kiku stayed standing. He revved up the boat and drove off through the red sea.

"So, Yao. Can you tell me where I am?" I asked looking to the brown haired man.

He nodded "Of course, aru!" Well, for starters, you're in Wonderland, the southern part of it. The northern part is a ways from here, it's where the king lives, past the Bloody Bruised Forest which no one ever really dares to go through"

"Why?" I questioned.

"It's the most dangerous part of Wonderland. It's there to partially protect the King of Wonderland from any people looking to take over the throne or hurt the king, aru"

"The king?"

"Wow, you hit you're head pretty hard there, huh?"

"...Yeah"

Yao laughed at my sheepish face and continued to explain "The king is the guy who runs Wonderland. People have to obey his rules or else they'll be killed or put in jail depending on what their guilty of" he explained.

"I see" I nodded.

Alright let's recap. So far I knew that I was in the southern part of this....What did Yao call it? Oh, yeah, Wonderland. The guy who runs Wonderland called the King lives in the northern part of it past this forest called the Bloody Bruised Forest and the forest is supposed to be the most dangerous part of Wonderland.....

I sure as hell wasn't in England anymore.....

"Oh, we'll be reaching land soon so there is something I must tell you before we dock, aru" Yao interrupted my thoughts.

"Sure, what is it?" I questioned.

"In most parts of Wonderland the King's army, the Spades and Aces, are patrolling it. Be careful of them, they're not particularly friendly and you don't really want to get in their way, aru" Yao warned.

The Spades and Aces....A pack of cards was the King's army....Wow this guy sure knew his self defense mechanisms well....

"Alright, thanks. I'll be careful" I said.

Alright so I had most of my questions answered. But I still had a couple more and I was not waiting another second for them to be answered. "Hey, Yao. I met a man before...Well, I saw him actually. I really didn't get a chance to speak with him but he said he was late for something and that the king would have his head, do you know who he was? And is the King evil in some way?" I asked curiously.

Yao chuckled "Well I've heard of the King being a bit odd but everyone in Wonderland is a bit weird so it's not much out of the ordinary and that guy was Toris the White Rabbit- the king's personal assistant. He's always worrying over something or another from what I've heard. Nice guy but much to much of a worry wort, aru" he told me.

All I could do was nod. I was still a bit confused but I was getting the hang of everything, well starting to anyway.

But I still had one more question...

"One more thing...Yao, if you don't mind me asking...Why is this water red?" I wondered but immediately regretted asking the question when an odd silence followed after my question was out.

Had I said something wrong?

"This water..."Yao started. "...In recent years Wonderland has been in a state of disarray due to a special person being lost, we call this person the 'Key' ", Yao continued on.

"Everyone in Wonderland is bounded to the Earth and this world so when the people have massive panic and worry Wonderland is effected as well...and so is it's nature. Peaceful creatures are no longer peaceful anymore and they begin to become violent. This water isn't red by nature...This water...is tainted and drowned.....in blood..."


	6. Chapter 5: A Kind Memory

**Disclaimer:**

I do not own Hetalia or Alice in Wonderland.

Sorry this chapter's a bit short.

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Chapter 5- A Kind Memory

When Yao gave me his answer to why the sea was red my eyes widened to the size of baseballs, even wider if they could go any wider than that circumference.

I would've never imagined that the dark red coloring of the sea was actually blood and here I was thinking that it could've been Koolaid- a punch drink.

Boy did I feel stupid.

"O-Oh....I see...." there wasn't much more I could say than that. I mean I had just found out I was floating in a sea of blood! That wasn't a normal thing...Well not on Earth but by Wonderland standards I guess it was sort of normal. Then again I had to wonder just what was the normal around this place....

"Look, we've reached land" Yao said, pointing ahead.

My eyes followed in the direction he had pointed in and sure enough there was a big stretch of land covered in trees a short distance ahead of us. I really couldn't see much else except for a sandy shore followed by a crowd of trees and that sort of worried me. Why? Mostly because I had no idea what I was walking into. Who knew what lie in wake of those woods.

For a split second I thought it could've been the Bloody Bruised Forest that Yao had spoken of but the thought went out of my head fairly quickly. The only reason I had even thought of it in the first place is because I feared Yao might be mad at me for asking about the strange color of the water which forced him to explain a rather horrible thing about Wonderland.

Yao didn't seem to be the type to do that sort of thing now that I thought carefully about it. Not to mention he had been the one to warn me of the Bloody Bruised Forest even when I lied to him that I had no memory of this place- 'course he didn't know I was lying.

The point was that he didn't have to even tell me of the forest at all yet he did and not only that but he had warned me of the King's Army- the Aces and Spades.

I hopped out of the boat as it came to a stop at the sandy land covered in trees and landed on the sandy ground "Thanks for the ride" I said looking back to Yao and Kiku.

"No problem" Yao said with a smile "These woods aren't the Bloody Bruised Forest if you're wondering. Their creepy but overall pretty harmless. Just look out for the Vaguely Trees and the Spitting Shrooms. The Spitting Shrooms will attempt to spit poison on you if you get to close to them" Yao warned.

I nodded "Thanks Yao....Wait a sec! You're not coming with me?"I questioned curiously.

Yao shook his head "Can't. Kiku and I have been assigned to keep track of this sea by the king, aru. If we leave he'd have our heads not to mention without Kiku and I here who knows how out of control it might get" he explained. "Us two keep it calm by riding our boat over it. The motor makes little noise and when the boat rides over the waters it helps to move the waves so that the blood doesn't sink all the way to the bottom of the sea. It's complex to understand but it seems to work" Yao chuckled.

I smiled "I see. Well, then I'll just have to do my best on my own" I grinned.

Yao gave me a surprised look "Eh? I was almost sure you'd beg us to come with you, aru!" he exclaimed. "I mean you don't have your memory or anything. Most people would consider it terrifying to walk through a place they don't know alone" he explained.

I laughed "I'm not like most people though" I smiled. "I enjoy a good adventure, I live for it and I can tell this is going to be a heck of a trip! Besides you guys have an important job here" I grinned at Yao.

Yao's expression softened quite considerably and I noticed a smile playing on his face "I see. Well I wish you the best of luck, Jay. I'm glad Kiku and I had the chance to meet you" he said and I noticed Kiku give a small nod.

I nodded "As am I. I've never met people so...kind, before" and my expression softened as Annabell came back to my thoughts.

Annabell...How are you right now....?

I looked at the men in the boat, attempting to hold back the tears forming in my eyes "I suppose I should be on my way then" I said, hurriedly and quickly turned around heading for the forest.

"Ms. Jay. Please wait" I heard Kiku call suddenly.

I was alarmed at first but I stopped, wiping the small bits of water in my eyes away before turning back around "What is it, Kiku?" I questioned.

"I felt that it should be said that the remedy for your memory loss can be found at the King's Castle, he knows everything and if anyone can help you it would be him. Though he is not so easy to get to so I would suggest going to the library in the town past these woods, the books inside it will provide you with vast amounts of knowledge about Wonderland that should help you out" Kiku informed me.

I stared at Kiku for a moment...such a strange man. Before he was so quiet and now all of the sudden he wanted to help me? Or perhaps he was doing it because he felt that it was the proper thing to do. Either way I was very thankful for his advice.

Seriously, how was I supposed to know there was a town past these woods? With a library none the less?!

I nodded slowly "Thanks...Kiku" I said.

"Well we should be going" Yao said "Again, good luck, Jay" he told me.

I nodded "Same to you" I said.

The two men nodded. Kiku started up the boat and the two drove off, leaving me to wave to their retreating boat as they sailed farther and farther out of my sight.

Once I could no longer see them I turned around and took a deep breath as I looked at the forest in front of me so vast and huge...Would I make it through?

It was time to find out....


	7. Chapter 6: Riddle Me This

Chapter 6- Riddle Me This, Riddle Me That

As I made my way into the woods I couldn't help but notice how dark and eerie they looked.

The woods were blanketed in shadows with dull brown trees sprouting dark green leaves visible in every direction, making it perfect for shadows to linger on the trunks of the trees. That's what those blasted things did too- the stupid shadows.

The shadows projected onto the trees looked like strange yet oddly terrifying creatures. To be honest I was scared to be walking through this dark forest alone, but I had to do it if I wanted to get to the town and find out everything I could about this world.

To keep myself from being scared out of my skin I tried to not concentrate on the trees, instead singing a little tune to myself quietly. Hearing something besides complete silence seemed to help me to feel a bit more comfortable. Even if it sounded ridiculous I really could've cared less, it worked and that's all I needed.

"That's a catchy tune" came a voice which caused me to jump about five feet in the air, my body shaking somewhat.

I gulped "W-Who's there?" I asked, trying to sound menacing but failing quite horribly.

However I felt a sense of dread fall over me when I didn't get an answer back from the same voice that had called out to me. At the same time however I got angry. That seemed to happen to me a lot. When I was scared I became angry as well. I think it was more of the fact that I was mad at myself for being scared though. Growling I looked around "Look, I'm not playing games here. Reveal yourself" I demanded lowly.

Suddenly I heard a chuckling sound "My you sure change tunes pretty quickly" mocked the voice.

Once again I tried finding the source of the voice but it seemed to be coming from nowhere, out of thin air.

"Up here!" the voice called out.

"Huh?" I mumbled looking up. When my eyes averted up to the branch of the tree that was closest to me on my left they came to be met with the figure of teenaged boy with short blonde hair that parted off to the left side of his head. He wore a black tank top, brown pants, glasses and well...he wasn't wearing shoes...But that was no where near the oddest part about him.

The oddest part about this gent my friend...

Was that he had black cat ears that stood up perfectly straight on his head while a long black cat tail dangled down from the branch he was on, swaying back and forth.

I stared at the boy for a moment in wonder....

I had finally realized something...

Toris's rabbit ears weren't fake at all, they were real. Toris was a human rabbit. Just like with this guy- he was a human cat.

I now could figure this out because the boy's tail wouldn't be swaying back and forth like that continuously when the boy wasn't even moving at all.

Then again I wasn't all so surprised, this world had proved to me more than once that everything I knew about the outside world, Earth, had to be forgotten in order for me to ever understand this world.

"Who....are you?" I questioned.

"Well that depends. I can either be the Cheshire Cat or you can call me Alfred" grinned the boy.

I raised an eyebrow "Well which one is right? I don't want to be calling you something you're not" I remarked as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Which it sort of was to be honest.

"Who's to say you'll be calling me at all?" the boy questioned as his tail swayed happily.

"Well, I'm talking to you right now aren't I?" I asked getting a bit annoyed. This guy just couldn't give me a straight answer for anything!

"I suppose that's true. However, both names are correct to address me. It is merely a choice for you to decide what to call me by" he grinned.

I sighed "Fine. Then I shall call you Alfred" I answered. "So Alfred. Do you know the way out of these woods?" I questioned, but immediately regretted it.

"I would like to know what you mean by 'out'. There are many ways to get 'out' of these woods but only one way will lead you to where you wish to go that is 'out' of these woods" Alfred grinned.

I felt my eyebrow begin to twitch as I felt the need to slap myself in the forehead with the palm of my hand "Can you tell me how to get out to the village?" I questioned once again.

"Oh! You mean that way out! Well I'd suggest to keep walking if I were you"

"....Why can you not just tell me where to go instead of being vague?"

"I'm being quite clear. Keep walking and you'll find you're way to the village"

"In which WAY do I keep walking?" I asked, hands on my hips in an annoyed manner.

"Walk ahead, forward. You'll reach the village eventually" Alfred smiled.

My left eye twitched.

This stupid ass just couldn't say that to begin with?! I mean seriously! I felt like I was playing twenty questions with this guy and just to find my way to a village that was right outside the forest!

"Thanks..." I answered in a flat tone before turning and walking on ahead.

"You know" Alfred called, making me stop for a moment. Although I couldn't comprehend why I did. He was probably just going to give me another riddle.

"You'd do well to tell the truth more often" he started "Oh and I'd stop by the place where the dull people are, they'll have a lot to tell you" Alfred answered, and suddenly I felt as if he weren't there anymore.

I looked back to where Alfred had originally been resting and sighed. Yep he was gone, disappeared into thin air. Of course by now I had grown somewhat use to people in this world doing such things. Now...what did Alfred mean by 'tell the truth more often' and 'visit the dull people' or whatever, what was he trying to say?

This cat was really on my nerves now

"_Riddle me this, Riddle me that. Give me a straight answer you pain in the ass cat"_


	8. Chapter 7: Dull Dances

Hey guys, I am so sorry I took so long with this! I have had a lot to do and my life has just been emotionally stressing, still is but I'm getting through it. Anyway, I'm back with a new chapter! I however do have one new change. From here on the main character's name is Sofia. The more involved background I had for this changed and so has the individual Sofia was based on. She is actually my Hetalia character, Scandinavia and instead of naming her whatever the fuck I felt like I did some research and gave her a more northern European name. But that's the only change.

Without further ado, let the story begin~!

Song Used: I'm A Member of the Midnight Crew - Eddie Morton

_Chapter 7 - Dull Dances_

My feet shuffled across the fallen leaves in the forest, they in themselves crunching beneath my shoes in a way that seemed to imitate my irritation. Not once in my life had I ever met someone so annoying as that damned Alfred. That pain in the ass cat. Sure I've met those that were irritating in an outright way, but it was his speech pattern and vague way of riddling that made my teeth grind against each other. In the end however I suppose he did give me some useful information. Without him who knows how long I would've been in that forest or where I would've ended up had he not given me the few pointers that he did.

It was with his pointers that I had now found my feet scuffing against the pale concrete... but something was wrong with this town... something was dreadfully off..

The brows above my eyes were slowly rising up in confusion as my eyes were as well twisting in the same confused motion. The concrete wasn't the only thing that was pale and dull. The entirety of the town matched that criteria. Windows on houses were cracked. Signs on doors were chipped and breaking. Buildings were crumbling and eroded. Heavens even the people were the same! They moved slow and zombie-like across the pavement. Their skin was as well an odd shade of grey, like something right out of a black and white film. The town itself carried an aura of abandonment.. Like time took a pause in this place.

"What in the world..." and I had to remember that this place was strange. I couldn't forget the very way in which I'd arrived here... that hole in the ground, the sudden twist of gravity taking a life of it's own and suddenly I was here. So, with my past recollections in mind I blocked out the normality of my world and continued in my quest to adjust to this place I was in.

That was when a threatening rumble came from below my upper torso and I was suddenly very thankful these people seemed stuck on a continuing rut, unable to register my presence. Again my stomach roared in hunger and a sigh slipped through my lips. I hadn't registered the last time I had eaten was hours ago and it was only just now starting to get me.

Time to find something to eat.

My eyes scoped out the town before me, looking to see of course if there was a place to eat at. I noticed a few places but of course none of them looked any appetizing. They looked the same as the town. Gray and dull. But if I wanted to eat, or have a shot at eating I'd need to give one of these places a shot. Being the lazy person that I am I ventured to the one closest to me. I wish I could tell you what the name of the place was but the sign was a faded shade of brown and the letters were just black smudges upon it. Completely illegible. How did I know it was a restaurant then? Or even a place to acquire something to eat? There were faded gray and white pastries in the window. They didn't look all that edible but it was better than nothing.

With hunger set in my stomach I ventured into the building, which had a decor that was more like an 80's bar once I actually got inside. There were people idly holding onto big glass cups, sitting at wide round tables. While others seemed to be attempting a pool shot, but moving so slow their sticks barely even moved the ceramic balls on the carpeted green surface. Off in the corner were men in hats and suits playing cards, it was either black jack or poker that was their objective game, I couldn't really tell.

After my quick observation of the place I strode up to the counter, looking at the woman slowly washing at the dishes with a solemn look in her gaze. Her faded blue eyes gazed out the window as if in reminiscence of memories long since past... ones she longed to return. It was a gaze I could relate with... one I knew very well. But my stomach was beckoning for something to devour.

"Excuse me miss" I inquired softly, afraid she might snap at me had I been too loud. However she did not what I had expected... in fact she didn't do anything at all, just kept staring out the window with that look in her eyes. Of course it confused me but I just figured I hadn't been loud enough, she was pretty deep in whatever she was thinking about. "Uh, miss? Excuse me, but could I get something to eat? I'm starving. Miss...?" she wasn't responding no matter how loud or how much I spoke. I waved my hand in front of her and still no response.

"You're not going to wake her you know~" came the voice that led me here.

"Not you again" I sighed in irritation that he'd returned to haunt me.

"Oh come now, I'm merely here to help~" grinned Alfred who now sat on the counter, his tail swaying idly in the air. "That woman, nor any of these people can hear you, nor react to you~"

"Would you mind telling me why that is?" I wondered, now actually intrigued. It would explain a lot of things. Why no one had looked when I entered the town and why this woman wasn't reacting to me.

"Well it might have something to do with that record player over there" purred the mischievous cat as he gestured over to a machine with a fancy looking megaphone on top of it off to the left near the window. Of course more commonly called a record player, I was wondering how I had missed it when I walked in. It stood out among everything and it had this... enticing kind of feel to it. That kind of feeling where you just NEEDED to touch it.

"What's so special about it?" I just had to wonder. Even though that feeling of enticement was there... I had to wonder what was so special about it. Sure it did stand out among the dull environment, it's shiny black surface glinting ever so brightly against the pale walls of the building. But like everything else though, it was stopped, caught in the paused momentum that this town expended.

"And can you please not be vague about it this time. I'm having a hard enough time just trying to grasp the abnormalities of this place" I pleaded, a sharp look in my azure eyes as I looked to the chessy cat for some answers.

"Aww you're no fun" pouted Alfred, pausing for a moment before continuing on with his seemingly planned explanation, his tail swaying with more fervor this time around. "Well see, once there used to be a man who played his piano here. His playing kept this town lively and happy. But then, as Wonderland began to change the King fetched for him to be brought to the castle so that his highness' inner demons could be quelled through the man's wonderful melodies" he hoped down from the counter. "With no more melody," he continued. " the people resorted to this megaphone here" he twirled around the shining machine. " But one day, it just stopped and the people were stuck in a rut, nearly locked in the moment they'd been experiencing before the record stopped" he finally finished.

"Why didn't anyone wind it up again? Wouldn't that be the obvious thing to do?" I couldn't help but ask, almost a bit baffled that no one had thought of such a thing.

"No one ever comes here anymore and those who do are too scared to touch the record player. They don't know if it'll have a positive effect" Alfred smirked softly, a little glint in his eyes that hid behind his glasses. "I wonder if you have enough gut to start it?" he inquired. "Well do you?"

"Well... I suppose I could give it a try... I mean this thing did give this town life before it stopped right?" and as confident as I sounded... I was hesitant. What if this really did have horrible consequences? What if it caused something terrible? I really didn't want to be responsible for something like that... but then again no one deserved to suffer like these people were.

"So? Will you~?" Alfred taunted me, moving slowly around the machine, almost as if trying to entice me further. I gazed at the glinting black surface, sparkling at me, enticing me forward and my feet guided me forward. One foot in front of the other and soon enough I was standing right before it. My hand outstretched for the needle and with a careful movement it descended, the record beginning to turn and music blasting from the giant black funnel.

_I hate a moral coward _

_One who lacks a manly spark_

_I just detest a man afraid to go home in the dark _

The music floated out of the machine and the most magical thing I'd ever seen began to take place right before my eyes. The walls began to colorize, turning a dark, glossy shade of beige.

The people sprung to life, the man taking the pool shot cheering as the ceramic spheres tumbled into the holes on the side of the table.

_I always spend my evenings where there's women, wine and song! But like a man I always bring my little wife along!_

The men playing cards laughed cheerily as they put up their stakes and the people sitting at the round tables clanked their beer bottles together. The woman staring out the window shed a single tear as a smile broke through her features and she sniffed softly, coming to terms with reality and returning to cleaning the dishes before her.

_I'm a member of the midnight crew. I'm a night owl and a wise bird too. Home with the milk in the morning, singing the same old song~_

This town was alive again, moving to the rhythm of a renewed beat.


End file.
